What would you do if you got all ATLA bending powers, with the caveat that every time someone saw you using them, you would lose the power until they looked away again. They can still use other senses
I'd probably use it to terraform certain urban and suburban places to be more hospitable to wildlife and humans living together. Like guerilla gardening and banksy mixed together.
There are other aspects to being the avatar, such as the avatar state, the avatar cycle, the spiritual abilities, none of which you would have. Also, the avatar's bending powers work even when others watch them do it.
One thing I would do is use my water bending powers to open a house painting business (interior/exterior and cabinets). I would promise completely perfect results in 1 day or less with the caveat that the customer cannot be home for 'safety' reasons. Oh! I could partner with an air bender and we could have places completely painted, not a drop spilled, and completely dry in 1 hour or less. Without even over charging people we could do so much volume we'd make bank!
I may or may not be painting right now and hating reality.
I feel like this is a very philosophical question. Like Toph bended metal, but metal is but one component of earth. Water and oil don’t mix unless under certain circumstances and oil isn’t recognized as being a part of water.
Exactly what a bender can bend has been talked to death through out the years but I don't think a water bender can bend oil. An earth bender can bend lava, a fluid. A water bender can bend ice, a solid.
Hm.
I think we'd just have to specify our special and unique process only works with water-based paints and primers. Could get away with the hybrid paints though and I think there's good enough hybrid primers to make it work.